The present invention relates to an apparatus for mounting a photographic film transparency from a photograph film web to prepare a photographic slide.
Photographic film transparencies are generally severed from a photographic film web and inserted into a photographic slide mount for use with a slide projector or other visualizing means. In particular, automatic and semi-automatic slide mounters have been developed to continuously mount a plurality of film transparencies into empty slide mounts supplied from a slide magazine.
A photographic film web is generally supported along a film track of the slide mounting apparatus. The film web is advanced along the film track to the knife assembly where individual film transparencies are severed from the photographic film web. The severed film transparencies are then inserted into slide mounts ejected from the slide magazine by a slide ejector.
In the preparation of photographic slides, it is important to ensure that the exposed image of the individual film transparencies is squarely positioned within the slide mount so that the exposed image is visible during use of the photographic slide. Typical slide mounts are formed of upper and lower frame sections which are connected along an outer border to form a pocket therebetween. Each of the frame sections includes a window which cooperatively define an aperture of the slide mount. It is within this aperture that the exposed images of photographic film transparencies must be aligned for viewing.
A variety of different slide mounts have been developed which help secure the photographic film transparency within the pocket of the slide mount. In one such example of a slide mount, registration pins are formed on the lower frame section. The registration pins engage the film to lock the film within the slide mount to ensure that the exposed image of the photographic film is correctly aligned and remains positioned within the aperture of the slide mount. The registration pins are designed to grip the film through engaging holes. Ordinarily photographic film includes sprocket holes along the lateral edges of the film to advance individual film transparencies for exposure. The sprocket holes define engaging holes for the registration pins to secure a film transparency within a slide mount. If sprocket holes are not included along the film, the registration pins can not lock the film.
Photographic film may also be exposed electronically from a cathode-ray tube "CRT" screen display. The image from the "CRT" screen is processed through an image generator to expose a piece of film. Because CRT exposed film is not fed through a photographic camera, it does not necessarily include sprocket holes. In addition, the orientation of the images on CRT exposed film may be 90.degree. from the normal orientation of images recorded by a photographic camera.